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Former ‘19 Kids and Counting’ Star Josh Duggar Found Guilty in Child Pornography Trial
Former 19 Kids and Counting star Josh Duggar has been found guilty in his child pornography trial, In Touch can confirm.
“The family prayed and prayed but also braced themselves for the worse,” a source tells In Touch exclusively. “They’re torn apart.”
After a six-day trial, a federal jury in Arkansas convicted Duggar, 33, on Thursday, December 9, following just under seven hours of deliberation on both charges. Duggar was charged with one count of receiving child pornography and one count of possessing child pornography. According to prosecutors, some of those images were of minors under the age of 12.
The disgraced reality TV star was taken into custody following the announcement of the verdict.
Judge Timothy Brooks stated that sentencing will occur in about four months. Duggar faces up to 40 years of jail time and half a million dollars in fines.
Duggar was arrested on April 29; he pleaded not guilty on April 30. The eldest son of Jim Bob Duggar and Michelle Duggar “allegedly used the internet to download child sexual abuse material,” the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Western District of Arkansas shared in a press release at the time. “Duggar allegedly possessed this material, some of which depicts the sexual abuse of children under the age of 12, in May 2019.”
During the trial, which began on November 30, 10 witnesses took the stand for the prosecution, including long-time family friends Jim Holt and Bobye Holt. During her testimony, Bobye claimed Duggar confessed to molesting young girls.
In 2015, In Touch obtained a police report from 2006 through the Freedom of Information Act, which revealed that Duggar, who was a teenager at the time, inappropriately touched five underage girls while they slept. Two of his sisters came forward as two of the victims, including his sister, Jill Dillard (née Duggar), who was included on a list of potential witnesses, along with her brother Jedidiah “Jed” Duggar.
“Michelle and Jim Bob are trying to stay strong, praying for Josh, Anna and their grandkids. The family is rallying, but some of the kids can’t forgive their brother Josh for what he did,” the insider says. “They’re horrified that he didn’t get help sooner.”
Throughout the trial, Duggar’s wife, Anna Duggar (née Keller), supported her husband and was frequently filmed holding his hand tightly as they entered and exited the courthouse. The couple share seven children; their youngest, Madyson, was born in October.
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